We arrived in Santiago after an 18-hour flight and settled into our hotel, The Singular. The hotel is in the Lastarria area of the city, which is similar to Cihangir. In front of us is a nice coffee shop, street vendors with stalls on the side street... A young, colorful, bohemian neighbourhood.
Santiago is nearing the end of autumn. The leaves of the trees in the park opposite us have already turned yellow. There are many parks in the city built by the river. We go up the hill closest to the hotel. This is where the city was first founded. We look at Santiago from above.
Lunch is at a different place: Carnal Prime Steakhouse, Jardín del Este. This time we are on the Etiler side of the city; luxury cars, beautiful houses… Santiago has 45% of the country's GDP.
Then rest at the hotel and walk in Lastarria in the evening. We are lucky; we came across the Lastarria Wine Festival because it was harvest season on May 15-17. We put it on our list to go tomorrow. The streets are crowded. The night ended with a third pisco sour. The weather is even colder at night.
First day impressions:
I was surprised because it is an orderly, European-style city.
The food is very nice.
People are smiling.
There are very few indigenous or black people.
The Andes are extraordinarily high and majestic, watching over the city from above.